Postcard depiction of the Wabash train City of Kansas City, ca. 1950. Click to enlarge.
(Curt Teich for Wabash Railroad, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
CITY OF KANSAS CITY
This article is about the Wabash Railroad streamliner. For the Union Pacific Railroad streamliner, see City of St. Louis (train).
The City of Kansas City was a streamlined passenger train operated by the Wabash Railroad and its successor the Norfolk and Western Railway between St. Louis and Kansas City, Missouri. It operated from 1947 to 1968. At the time of its introduction it was the only streamliner which operated entirely within the state of Missouri.
History
The City of Kansas City commenced operating on November 26, 1947, and made a daily 278-mile (447 km) round trip schedule between St. Louis and Kansas City. At the time of its introduction it was the only streamliner which operated entirely within the state of Missouri. General Omar Bradley, a native Missourian who as a young man had worked on the Wabash, christened the new train.
Primarily a daylight train, No. 3 departed St. Louis at 8:45 am, and arrived in KC at 2:15 pm. The consist was then turned around and readied for the eastbound trip as No. 12, departing KC at 3:55 pm, and arriving in St. Louis at 9:45 pm.
The Norfolk and Western Railway leased the Wabash in 1964 but did not discontinue the City of Kansas City until February 1968.
Equipment
The American Car and Foundry Company built the original seven-car consist in their St. Charles, Missouri plant in the suburbs of St. Louis. Cars included a baggage car, baggage-mail car, two 58-seat coaches, a lunch counter-coach, a dining car, and a parlor-observation car. The interior of the parlor-observation car was designed according to Pullman Plan #9001 and Pullman managed the car, as it did with all the Wabash parlor cars.
Sample consist
No. 375 baggage car
No. 475 baggage-mail car
No. 1425 coach (58 seats)
No. 1426 coach (58 seats)
No. 1525 lunch counter-coach
No. 50 dining car
No. 1600 parlor-observation car
Overview
Service type: Inter-city rail
Status: Discontinued
Locale: Midwest United States
First service: November 26, 1947
Last service February: 1968
Former operator: Wabash Railroad
Route Termini: St. Louis, Missouri / Kansas City, Missouri
Distance traveled: 278.1 miles (447.6 km)
Train numbers: Westbound: 3; east bound: 12
On-board services
Seating arrangements: Reclining seat coaches
Catering facilities: Dining car
Observation facilities: Parlor-lounge car